Pep Guardiola warned Manchester City to cut out sluggish starts after the champions recovered from a tepid opening to beat Aston Villa 3-0 on Saturday.
Guardiola’s side closed the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool to three points thanks to goals from Raheem Sterling, David Silva and Ilkay Gundogan at the Etihad Stadium.
But City boss Guardiola was frustrated with the way his players struggled to establish any momentum in the first half, just days after they fell behind against Atalanta in the Champions League before eventually winning 5-1.
He fears City will be caught out in future if they continue to play so lethargically in the first half.
“Of course, respect and credit for Aston Villa. The first half we played football but we don’t play in the way we should play,” Guardiola said.
“We were better in the second half. I don’t know if it was because of the early goal.
“In the second we play in the way we normally are but we have to try and play 90 minutes. We played just 45.”
City’s second successive league win means Liverpool are under pressure to beat Tottenham at Anfield in Sunday’s clash between last season’s Champions League finalists.
AFP